EDGEWATER — After years of anticipation and setbacks, the new Metra station at Peterson and Ridge avenues is finally opening its platforms to commuters on May 20. The Peterson/Ridge station is intended to ease travel on Metra's Union Pacific North Line, which has long required additional accessibility for residents in the Edgewater neighborhood, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The station's construction, which broke ground back in November 2021, ran over budget by about $5 million and experienced delays due to "longer COVID-related lead times," as stated by the Chicago Tribune. The complications affected material acquisitions necessary for completing the build, as per the Chicago Tribune's coverage. Amidst frustrations, the modern station, strategically positioned along tracks west of the intersection at North Ridge and West Peterson avenues, will offer two six-car platforms that stretch over Peterson, enabling boarding from both sides of the street. Such a design ensures a direct and efficient flow of passenger traffic.
While Edgewater residents brace for their new transit asset, Metra has already begun work on another much-anticipated project—the Auburn Park station in Auburn Gresham. This station, similar to its Edgewater counterpart, faced years of budgetary and planning challenges but is projected to serve as a key transit hub on 79th Street. "We continue to monitor customer feedback, and this new schedule shows that we are listening," said Metra CEO and executive director Jim Derwinski, in a statement obtained by Block Club Chicago. Despite unforeseen monetary inflations and timeline extensions, both projects signify a renewal of commitment toward enhancing Chicago's public transportation network.
Residents eager to review the updated train times for the Union Pacific North Line, which spans from Kenosha to Downtown with various suburban and North Side stops, can find the new schedules on Metra's website. With the opening of the station, Edgewater and its neighbors find themselves at the end of a laborious journey, setting sail on a new tide of metropolitan connectivity and improved civilian mobility.
.jpg){kind=link}